The Winds of Winter
by Jeyfeather1234
Summary: [AU] In early winter, Steve reunites with his old friend, Bucky, during a monster attack. However, winter's bringing more than just snow this year and Bucky refuses to answer any questions about the past seventy years. On top of that, the team has to find an ancient deity no one has seen in centuries and as always, the odds are not in their favor.
1. When Winter Comes

_"When winter comes…_  
 _You'll hear no lions roar…_  
 _No stags grazing the fields…_  
 _No roses growing in the meadows…_  
 _No snakes in the sand…_  
 _The krakens will freeze where they swim…_  
 _The flayed men will rot and wither…_  
 _No trouts swimming in the river and no falcons flying in the air…_  
 _Not even the dragon's breath will warm you in your halls._  
 _You shall hear only the wolves howl…_  
 _And then you will know. Winter has come."_


	2. An Old Friend

Steve Rogers sipped the rest of his hot chocolate and watched in amusement as Natasha tried to teach Sam how to ice skate. He chuckled, shaking his head. "That's it!" Sam said in frustration. "I give up!" He crawled onto the snow and stood beside the 90-year-old man.

"Looks like you had fun out there," Steve said with a smile. Sam shoved him playfully. The two watched Natasha skate across the frozen lake like a professional for a moment before Steve said, "I'm gonna go get some more hot chocolate."

"Don't be too long. Nat says we'll be leaving in a few moments." He nodded and walked towards the nearby coffee shop before stopping in his tracks. A man wearing a cap was leaning against a pole, sipping his coffee, and was staring intently at him.

"Steve Rogers," he said, motioning for the super soldier to come closer. "I got somethin' for ya." He flipped out a silver card and held it out to him. "You'll need it one day." Steve stared at the number on the card and looked up at him skeptically.

"What's this for?" he asked.

"It's for the end." The stranger glanced up at the cloudy sky and nodded. "Yeah, it's gettin' close," he murmured to himself before licking his lips. "Winter's comin' and it's gonna bring a hell lot more than snow."

"Winter's already here."

"Not that kind of winter. The one you'll face is one hell of a bitch." He sipped his coffee once more. "You know the old Game of Thrones quote about winter comin' right?" Steve nodded. He'd heard Sam talk about it plenty of times during the fall. "Good. Keep that in mind and don't forget it." He wanted to ask what exactly that meant, but the man was already on his way to meet a group of men across the street. Sighing, the super soldier continued on his trip to get some more hot chocolate. His brows furrowed as he thought of what kind of winter the man was talking about. He knew better than to trust a stranger but still...something in his gut told him to heed his warning, telling him that whatever this winter was, it wasn't going to be a pretty one.

* * *

Steve had had his fare share of aliens for the past three years but this? This was something new. The creature that they were currently fighting looked like a mutated hairless rat with horns. Natasha grimaced as the thing bared its ugly yellow teeth and swatted a webbed paw at them. Steve ducked and rolled away just in time. "Cap," Sam said with a hint of annoyance, "this thing is eating my bullets. Literally." He wasn't joking. The alien was absorbing every bullet and beam of energy that hit it. This was definitely not your everyday alien.

"Maybe we should set it on fire or something," Tony suggested.

"I doubt this thing is flammable," Steve grunted as he blocked a spike with his shield.

"Its skin way too thick," Natasha said as she shoved her electric batons onto its temples. "I don't think-" The beast easily shook her off and let out an ear splitting roar. It spun around, knocking Steve into a building with its tail. As he struggled to get up, a man in a dark cloak appeared out of nowhere and summoned a large black sword from thin air. As the cloaked stranger stepped forward, magic blue platforms appeared which he used as stairs to reach the monster's head. Quickly, he leaped onto its neck and shoved his sword deep into its center eye. The monster fell and went limp as it's slaughterer slid off of it.

He stood before Steve and helped him up before saying, "Go for the eyes next time."

"Thanks, I'll- wait." Steve studied the man for a moment before widening his eyes in shock. "Bucky?" Bucky stepped back as the other avengers came to check on him.

"Cap, you okay?" Nat asked.

"And who the hell is this guy?" Sam asked, glancing at Bucky.

"This is...this is Bucky. Bucky Barnes," Steve introduced.

"Wait, you mean Sergeant Barnes, your best friend from the 1940s? I thought he was dead!"

"So did I..." Bucky's sword dissipated and he brushed a strand of hair from his eyes. "How are you even...? What happened to you after all these years?" He glanced at the dead monster with furrowed brows before swiping his hand. Immediately, the corpse turned to dust and the damage that had been done to the city was reversed.

"It's a long story," he responded, turning to his old friend. Steve shook his head.

"I can't believe it."

"You should. Now you'd better get going. People will be getting suspicious and I am not in the mood for an interview."

"You know, we could really use your help around here with your...magic." Bucky narrowed his eyes and studied him for a brief moment as if he were suspecting that he'd do something to cause him harm.

"Fine. Just don't think I'll be joining your little team anytime soon." The coldness in his voice unsettled Steve. Something was clearly different about him. As Rhodey led the way to the quinjet, Steve slowed down his pace so Bucky could catch up to him.

"How did you survive the fall?" he asked quietly. The latter shrugged.

"Not sure. Must've been Zola's experiments that kept me alive." He paused. "Did you look for me?"

"Why wouldn't I? You're my best friend and I'm with you til the end of the line, remember?" He slowly nodded. When they got on the quinjet, he sat in the back seat where it was darkest, observing them carefully. Steve sat next to him.

"So, that thing we fought," Sam began. "What was it?"

"Ravicus Minor, nasty things thay are." Bucky shrugged off his cloak and readjusted the metal arm attached to his shoulder into a more comfortable postion. Sunlight from the window glinted off the smooth silver metal as he pulled off the leather gloves from his robotic hands.

"Nice arm you've got there," Natasha complimented. Bucky muttered a thanks before pulling the cloak over his arm. A small box on his side beeped and a foreign voice spoke.

 _"звіт про місію."_

Bucky pressed a button on the box and replied. There was a brief pause before the speaker on the other end responded. Steve looked at him quizzically. "There's nothing to worry about. My friend was just reminding me to do something when I get back." As he leaned back in his chair, he made a pained sound. Natasha got up instinctively, getting the first-aid kit.

"Here," she said as she tried to get him to turn so she could tend to his wounds. "Let me take care of-"

" _No!_ " Bucky barked abruptly and shoved her away from him. "Don't touch me!"

"Buck, it's okay," Steve assured, grabbing his arm before he could strike at her. The next thing he knew, his cheek was bleeding from the wound his friend had inflicted upon him. Blood trickled into his beard as he inhaled sharply and scooted away from the panicking passenger.

"Shit, somebody get me a tranquilizer," Rhodes ordered. Bucky's gaze locked on him the way a predator would when it'd found its prey. It was only a matter of seconds, barely half a minute before he had the veteran pinned to the ground. Sunlight glinted off his razor sharp claws from the metal arm. Clint shoved him off of Rhodes and prepared to fire an arrow at him in case he tried to attack, but Bucky was faster. He kicked his legs, causing him to fall and snapped his bow in half. The others readied their weapons and aimed it at him.

"Stand down," Tony barked, aiming a repulsor at him.

"Bucky," Steve said in a gentle yet firm voice. "Hey, look at me. Look, they won't hurt you, okay? They're just trying to help you get better so your wounds don't get infected. Just calm down and relax. Remember what you taught me way back when we were kids? Breathe, count to ten, and find your happy place." There was a tense moment of silence before Bucky relaxed, sheathed his claws, and sat in the seat he'd previously sat in. Steve sat next to him. Natasha came over with the first-aid kit and cleaned up the blood from the blonde's face before putting on the band-aid. "You okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I've been through worse." She glanced at Bucky, looking like she wanted to say something to him or maybe wanting him to say something to her.

"I'm sorry," he said in a quiet voice, avoiding her gaze.

"It's fine. You were just...scared that's all. Do you want me to...?" Bucky hesitated before responding.

"Just clean it," he muttered. Nat sat next to him and carefully lifted his shirt. Her brows furrowed as she lightly traced the wounds with her fingers. Steve made brief eye contact with her before she began to work. He felt butterflies in his stomach at Nat's perplexed gaze. It wasn't an "I-don't-know-how-to-do-this" kind of perplexed. It was a "what-the-freak-is-this" kind of perplexed. The kind that said that this was either some migical or alien stuff they were dealing with. But neither of the three said a word as the quinjet flew back to the Avengers facility. They just sat there in silence until Natasha finished bandaging Bucky's wounds and pulled down his shirt. Bucky leaned back in his chair and stared out the window, watching the snow fall on glass. A moment passed before he murmured, "I didn't mean to hurt you. I just...I don't like people touching me."

"You've had a bad experience with the whole physical contact thing haven't you?" Natasha asked in an almost soft tone. Bucky placed his knees under his chin.

"...I don't want to talk about it." Steve watched a haunted look creep up in his eyes like frost on a windowsill and refrained from embracing him.

"You know, Sam over there," he pointed to where his friend was seated not too far away, "he helps vets with PTSD over at Veterans Affairs. If you ever want to talk about-"

"I don't _need_ your help," Bucky snapped. "I'm just...getting used to it all." Getting used to what? The physical abuse? Torture? Steve didn't know. What he did he did know was that whoever had rescued Bucky had screwed with his mind, making him doubt his faith in his closest friend. What would become of him if he were to ever go back to where he'd come from? Would they treat him as nothing more than a soldier: forced to follow rules or suffer the consequence of unbearable pain? Steve felt a pang of sorrow and regret in his heart. If only he'd have reached a little further on that train...

"It's not good to bottle up your feelings. I'm just saying." Bucky gave him a cold look before resting his head against the back of his chair. Natasha nodded at Steve and moved to sit next to Tony. Whatever was bothering her a moment ago seemed to have been forgotten, but Steve knew her better than that. She'd tell him later. With a sigh, he slouched in his chair and listened to the hum of the jet as he dozed off.

* * *

 **A/N: This is the first Avengers fanfiction I'm writing so bear with me if I make the characters OOC. If you might've already guessed, I was inspired by the Game of Thrones quote to write this. Since Bucky wasn't rescued by HYDRA, he is not the Winter Soldier in this story. CA:TWS did not happen and neither did Age of Ultron or Civil War. So basically this is a totally different universe than the canon MCU version. This story is GoT and CA:TWS theme based so the title of chapters and the story come from the soundtracks.** **Be sure to comment in the review section and hit that favorite and follow button.**


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